BETTY Tomlinson puts the secret of her long life down to her 22-year-long stint working at a charity shop.

The 90-year-old widow is the longest ever serving volunteer at the Oxfam shop on Preston New Road, Blackburn.

Betty, of Furness Avenue, Blackburn, said: "The work is interesting and it has kept me young all these years.

"I get a lot of satisfaction out of helping poorer countries through the charity and I also get to meet a lot of people."

Mother-of-two Betty, who was married to the late Keith Tomlinson, started at the shop in 1976 after retiring from her job as school meals supervisor working in various schools in Blackburn.

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